Lahore Qalandars batter Fakhar Zaman has been charged with a Level 3 offense under Article 2.14 of the Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel for allegedly breaching Article 41.3 of the playing conditions.
Fakhar Zaman denied the charge during a disciplinary hearing conducted by match referee Roshan Mahanama. A further hearing is scheduled within the next 48 hours, after which the referee will deliver a final verdict.
The incident took place during the second innings of the match.
The controversy arose shortly before the final over of Karachi Kings’ innings, when on-field umpires examined the ball and ruled that its condition had been changed by Lahore Qalandars. As a result, a five-run penalty was awarded to the batting side.
The penalty reduced the target from 14 runs to just nine in the final over, shifting momentum in favor of the Kings.
Abbas Afridi took advantage of the situation by hitting consecutive boundaries on the second and third deliveries, leading the 2020 champions to a dramatic four-wicket victory.
Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi expressed disappointment with the decision but said he was unaware of the specific allegation at the time.
“I don’t know about this ball tampering, and we’ll discuss. Five runs penalty… but we can’t say anything. We will see,” Shaheen said during the post-match presentation.
Reflecting on the game, he added that his team performed well with the bat and believed the target was competitive. Earlier, Lahore Qalandars posted 128-9 in their 20 overs after choosing to bat first.
Abdullah Shafique top-scored with 33 off 24 balls, including four boundaries and one six. Haseebullah Khan added 28 runs from 30 deliveries, with one four and one six.
Chasing a target of 129 on a challenging pitch, Karachi Kings reached the total with three balls remaining, losing six wickets.
Muhammad Waseem led the chase with 38 off 37 balls, hitting three fours and one six. Saad Baig and Moeen Ali contributed 19 and 18 runs respectively.
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